THE CROWN -

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THE CROWN - POSSESSED 13 - METAL BLADE
The Crown's newest album is packaged to resemble a Hammer Studio movie. The horror themed-CD goes all out to look like a film's packaging. Although the band might have gone too far with changing the band's name to The Return Of The Crown on the cover!
Possessed 13 is so named for several reasons. The standard version - there are several versions out there - features thirteen songs. As well, the band is celebrating its thirteenth year. Lastly, the number 13 is well-known to stand for all things magnificent of course. Of the 13 songs, the first five are supposed to represent the band's unsigned period, the next five are meant to represent the band's five albums and the last three symbolize the future. Furthermore, at a guess, the band is taking the piss out of its fans. How else would one explain song titles like Kill 'Em All (geriatrica), Are You Morbid? (Celtic dross) and Dawn Of Emptiness (Morbid Angel). Even songs like No Tomorrow, Deliverance and In Memoriam could have lineage. Musically, and with the return of erstwhile Singer Johan Lindstrand the band has hardened its sound and moved away from some of the past's Motorhead tendencies. This is At The Gates-ish material mixed with death metal. Opener No Tomorrow slashes brutally. On the other hand, song nine, the aforementioned Kill 'Em All, sports an unmistakable rock 'n roll solo.
What hurts the band is the unimpressive sound though. The high end is barely represented and the bottom end is muffled. The snare drums hardly ever make a showing. Fans might wish to overlook that though. Possessed 13's packaging - complete with photography courtesy of Dream Evil drummer Snowy Shaw - is the differentiating actor here. - Ali "The Metallian"